Exemption for driving in pedestrian areas

The center of Heerlen is largely a pedestrian zone. Every day, the pedestrian zone is open to everyone between 7:30 a.m. and 12:00 p.m. To drive in outside these hours, you need an exemption. As a business owner or resident of the city center, you can then reach your property or home by car. Apply for an exemption from the municipality.

Arrange online

Approach

  • Go to the municipal Parking Office at .
  • Log in with DigiD.
  • Follow the steps. 

Only one license plate number can be active at a time. The license plate number that was previously active will no longer be valid once you enter a different one. You can enter up to 3 different license plate numbers on each permit.
Please note: if you are bringing a trailer with its own license plate number, you must apply for a separate permit for it.

Need help?

Are you having trouble? Do you have questions? Please call our customer contact center during office hours: 045-5605040. We will send you a manual.
If you have difficulty with digital matters, but you do have a smartphone, DigiD, and a bank account with iDeal, the Service Point at your library can help you with your application.

Costs

Rate 2026

€19.50 for a permit to drive into the city center

Description

We use a camera system to check whether people are allowed to drive into the city center. The cameras scan the license plate of a passing vehicle and check whether it has an exemption to drive into the city center. All license plates with an exemption (including motorcycles, mopeds, and scooters) are stored in a database. If a camera "sees" a license plate that is not included in the database, the owner will receive a fine.

Warning 

You will immediately receive a fine the first time you enter without an exemption.

Temporary different license plate

Would you like to temporarily change the license plate number on your parking permit, for example because you have a loaner car? If so, add a temporary license plate number. You can do this in the online parking portal by clicking the “Change” button. The temporary license plate will be active on your permit for one week. After that, we will automatically reactivate the original license plate. Do you need the temporary license plate for longer than a week? Then add it again. If you’re using a different license plate for less than one week, you’ll need to manually reset the permit to the original license plate.
Please note! You may add a temporary license plate five times per year.

Terminate exemption

Are you moving and would you like to cancel your exemption? You can also arrange this via the online parking desk.

Requirements

Supporting documents for residents:

  • Lease car:Lease agreementand vehicle registration certificate
  • Company car:Employer's statement and vehicle registration certificate
  • Private car used for business purposes:Employer's statement and vehicle registration certificate
  • Vehicle registered in the name of a partner or parent living at the same address:Vehicle registration certificate
  • The vehicle has a foreign license plate:registration certificate
  • The car will soon be registered in your name:Lease agreement or purchase agreement
  • None of the above: You cannot apply for a permit.

Supporting documents for companies: 

  • Car registered in the company's name: Vehicle registration certificate and an extract from the Chamber of Commerce register 
  • Lease car: Lease agreementand an extract from the Chamber of Commerce register 
  • Employee's own car: Vehicle registration certificateand employer's statement 
  • The vehicle has a foreign license plate: Vehicle registration certificate
  • Are you applying for an exemption to carry out work: A work order 

In the event of misuse or fraud, the municipality of Heerlen may revoke the parking permit.

Term

On Tuesdays, access to the Promenade and part of the Bongerd in downtown Heerlen is closed starting at 10 a.m. due to the weekly market.

We will first assess your application for an exemption. This will take a maximum of five working days. If we approve your application, you will receive an email and you can pay via iDEAL in the online parking office. The exemption will be active from that moment on.

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